Written Answers

Friday 22 September 2000

Scottish Executive

Amnesic Shellfish Poisoning

Mr Jamie McGrigor (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what its assessment is for the future of the scallop industry given the recurrence of amnesic shellfish poisoning in 2000.

Mr John Home Robertson: The incidence of shellfish poison contamination is making it necessary for scallop fishermen and processors to make changes to their operations and to seek opportunities for diversification. I have advised the industry that my department is willing to discuss ways of helping the scallop sector to make changes to take account of this problem.

  The shellfish sector has considerable potential despite these problems. Scallop landings in 1999, the first year of major closures, were valued at £16.4 million. This was higher than the average value of landings in the period 1992-98 of £15.3 million.

Dental Care

Mrs Margaret Ewing (Moray) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how it proposes to tackle any lack of orthodontic provision.

Susan Deacon: The provision of dental services in general is kept under review by health boards, Acute Trusts and Primary Care NHS Trusts which work in co-operation to ensure availability of and improvements in services. In relation to primary care orthodontic services, Primary Care NHS Trusts and island health boards may apply for approval to Scottish Ministers to employ specialist orthodontic salaried dentists where in their view this would be the most appropriate way forward to tackle problems with access to such services in their areas.

Dental Care

Mrs Margaret Ewing (Moray) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many patients requiring orthodontic treatment attend private practices in each health board area.

Susan Deacon: Information on private orthodontic treatment is not available.

Environment

Scott Barrie (Dunfermline West) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will outline the outcome of the spending review for the environment in Scotland.

Sarah Boyack: We have made additional provision for expenditure on the environment in Scotland by the Scottish Executive and local authorities of almost £190 million in total over the next three years (2001-02 to 2003-04) - a major funding package to deliver on our commitments to the environment and set in train action now to protect future generations.

  Making a difference for Scotland: Spending Plans for Scotland in 2001-02 to 2003-04 sets out spending totals for Environment. Below is a table of the increases in spending on the environment by the Scottish Executive over the next three years in comparison with 2000-01.

  


£ million


2001-02


2002-03


2003-04


Total




Water


8.3


8.3


15.7


32.3




Environmental Protection


6.1


6.6


7.2


19.9




Natural Heritage


9.1


10.6


13.6


33.3




Research and Sustainable Action


0.4


0.4


0.4


1.2




Total increases


23.9


25.9


36.9


86.7




  The Environmental Protection provision includes extra grant-in-aid to the Scottish Environment Protection Agency of £16.5 million over the three years (£5.3 million/£5.3 million/£5.9 million); and increased provision for waste initiatives.

  The Natural Heritage provision will give Scottish Natural Heritage £22.7 million extra over the three years (£7.0 million/£7.3 million/£8.4 million), with a further £10.6 million extra (£2.1 million/£3.3 million/£5.2 million) going to the establishment of National Parks.

  The allocation for water represents the public expenditure support to the three Scottish water authorities to help finance their investment programmes to meet environmental and public health standards. The public expenditure treatment of the water authorities, which are public corporations, has changed substantially as a result of the move to resource budgeting. The figures in the table show total capital spending less profits, and do not take account of the cost of capital charge on net assets. No decisions have yet been made on the allocation of this provision between the three water authorities, and a further announcement will be made in due course. For the rest of the environment programme, there will be an increase from £61 million to £76 million – an overall percentage increase is 25% in real terms compared to 2000-01.

  In addition to these increases, we have provided almost £50 million extra across the three years of the review period for environmental improvements within the overall increased expenditure by local authorities. This should enable local authorities to increase expenditure on flood prevention, coastal protection, access to the countryside and air quality and on dealing with waste and contaminated land.

  In addition to the general funding for local authorities on the environment, I shall be proposing special arrangements specifically on waste for the distribution of a further £50 million extra over the review period to help local authorities to take forward implementation of the National Waste Strategy.

  Taken together with the spending increase of £86.7 million set out in the table, this provides a total increase of almost £190 million.

Exam Results

Elaine Smith (Coatbridge and Chryston) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, regarding action taken by schools and teachers throughout Scotland to assist in resolving the difficulties experienced by the Scottish Qualifications Authority in exam result notification, whether it will reimburse local authorities for any additional monies spent as a consequence of these difficulties.

Mr Sam Galbraith: We would consider any claims submitted by authorities.

Freedom of Information

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will make a statement on freedom of information in Scotland.

Mr Jim Wallace: The Scottish Executive is committed to introducing an effective freedom of information regime. The Executive published a consultation document, An Open Scotland , on 25 November 1999. A total of 119 responses were received, and the Executive published a summary of responses on 25 May. These documents are available in SPICe.

  The Executive is preparing draft freedom of information legislation, which will be published for consultation and pre-legislative scrutiny prior to it being introduced to the Parliament.

Health

Mrs Margaret Ewing (Moray) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what improvements have been made to the provision of oral and maxillofacial services at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary since 6 March 2000.

Mrs Margaret Ewing (Moray) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the two consultants required by the Oral and Maxillofacial Department of Aberdeen Royal Infirmary have now been appointed and, if so, when these appointments were made.

Susan Deacon: Grampian University Hospitals NHS Trust has appointed a consultant to fill a vacancy in the Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Department at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary. He is expected to take up post shortly.

Housing

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the costs of administering the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 (Licensing of Houses in Multiple Occupation) Order 2000 are to be met by local authorities; whether the charges are to be passed on entirely to applicants for licenses of houses in multiple occupation; whether the level of charges is to be uniform across all local authorities and what will be the level of such charges; and, if the charges are not uniform, whether it will place in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre details of the charges imposed by each local authority.

Ms Wendy Alexander: Under the provisions of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982, local authorities shall seek to ensure that the total amount of licence fees receivable is sufficient to meet the costs of operating the licensing systems established under the Act, including the mandatory licensing of houses in multiple occupation (HMOs). Most fee income will derive from licence applications, but fees can also be charged for the issue of certified duplicate licences, the consideration of a material change of circumstances or a material change in premises used as HMOs, and the issue of certified true copies of entries in the register of licence applications. The level of charges is a matter for each local authority and details are not currently held centrally, although this is expected to be one of the matters to be included in the Scottish Executive’s monitoring of the operation of mandatory licensing of HMOs.

Nursing

Michael Russell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how it will ensure that qualified students who secure a place on a course leading to a qualification in nursing do not have to wait for a longer period for Scottish courses than for courses provided in England.

Susan Deacon: The number of initial nurse training places in Scotland is determined according to the forecast requirements of the NHS and other health sector employers. Information is not held centrally gauging the level of demand from potential students.

Nursing

Michael Russell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what resources, broken down by health board area, it is applying to the training of nurses, how those resources have changed in the last three years, and how many places are available in total and in each health board area.

Susan Deacon: The majority of pre-registration training of nurses and midwives in Scotland is provided by higher education institutions under contract to the Scottish Executive. The Scottish Executive Health Department also funds bursaries for students on these courses.

  Total Health Department spend in the last three years was as follows:

  





1997-98
£ million


1998-99
£ million


1999-2000
£ million




Contracts


£31.3


£33.5


£34.2




Student bursaries


£29.2


£31.9


£34.5




Total


£60.5


£65.4


£68.8




  This information cannot be disaggregated by health board area.

  In 2000-01, these contracts will provide places for 2,820 new students on initial nursing and midwifery training courses, and for a further 215 on enrolled nurse conversion courses. The 2,820 initial training intake places are broken down as follows:

  


Glasgow Caledonian University


365




Paisley University


395




Bell College, Hamilton


310




Stirling University


350




Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen


385




Dundee University


465




Napier University, Edinburgh


550




  In addition to the contracted places, other initial training in the university sector is funded by the Scottish Higher Education Funding Council.

Nursing

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what level of loan can be accessed by students studying for nursing qualifications.

Susan Deacon: Half of the support for nursing students on degree courses is in the form of access to a non-means-tested student loan, subject to eligibility conditions. Their loan entitlement is up to £1,825 per annum.

  Nursing students on diploma courses are supported by non-means tested bursaries and do not have access to student loans.

Nursing

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what level of grant can be accessed by students studying for nursing qualifications.

Susan Deacon: Nursing students on diploma courses are supported by a non-means tested grant. The basic allowances are £5,409 for those over 26 and £4,803 for those under 26. Additional means tested support is provided for students with dependants, and excess placement travel costs are reimbursed.

  Support for nursing students on degree courses is by means of a means tested bursary and repayable student loan, subject to eligibility conditions. The bursary and loan each make up about 50% of the total living cost package and the maximum bursary payable is £1,825. An additional allowance for approved travel costs over the first £80 is also available. Where applicable, supplementary allowances of up to £1,000 from the Lone Parents Grant, up to £740 from the Two Homes Grant and an amount from the Dependants’ Grant for students with a dependant spouse or children are also available.

  Students in receipt of either type of bursary also have their fees paid on their behalf by the Scottish Executive.

Roads

Mr Murray Tosh (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether objections to the proposal to close Holyrood Road were lodged; what procedures were used to consider the proposal and any objections and whether the Road Closure Order has now been approved.

Sarah Boyack: This is a matter for the City of Edinburgh Council.

Scottish Qualifications Authority

David Mundell (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Scottish Qualifications Authority has taken steps to arrange the marking of the 2000-01 Advanced Higher exam papers.

Mr Sam Galbraith: The independent inquiry which I have commissioned will look at the recruitment of markers for all National Qualifications under Higher Still, SCE Higher, Certificate of Sixth Year Studies and Standard Grade exams, and will make recommendations about how this should operate in future.

Scottish Qualifications Authority

David Mundell (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of school computer systems are compatible with Scottish Qualifications Authority computer systems to allow the exchange of data.

Mr Sam Galbraith: I understand that all school computer systems are capable, in principle, of achieving compatibility with the computer system operated by the Scottish Qualifications Authority. The independent inquiry which I have commissioned will look at the electronic exchange of data between SQA and centres, and will recommend any necessary changes to ensure that this operates effectively in future.

Scottish Qualifications Authority

David McLetchie (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive on how many occasions directions have been given to the Scottish Qualifications Authority since its inception in terms of section 9 of the Education (Scotland) Act 1996 and what the nature and content of such directions was on each occasion.

Henry McLeish: There have been no directions to SQA under section 9 of the Education (Scotland) Act 1996.

Scottish Qualifications Authority

David McLetchie (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive on how many occasions guidance of statutory or non-statutory nature has been given to the Scottish Qualifications Authority since its inception and what the nature and content of such guidance was on each occasion.

Henry McLeish: No guidance of a statutory nature has been given to the SQA since its inception. Guidance on the relationship between Scottish Ministers and the authority is set out in a Management Statement and Financial Memorandum. Guidance is also given annually on objectives and performance indicators in approving SQA’s Corporate Plan.

Scottish Qualifications Authority

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the Ministerial Statement by the Minister for Children and Education on 6 September 2000 and in particular his statement on the need for the truth of this year’s events to be impartially evaluated and his commitment that all necessary documents will be made available to the parliamentary committees carrying out investigations, whether the committees will have access to all documents in order to decide which are necessary or whether the Executive will decide what documents to make available, and by what date all documents will be made available to the committees.

Mr Sam Galbraith: As I indicated in my responses to questions following my statement on 6 September, I wish to be as helpful as possible in providing information to the Education, Culture and Sport Committee which is relevant to their inquiry into the issues surrounding the issue of examination results by the Scottish Qualifications Authority. A substantial volume of documents has been provided to the committee today and I believe that these will enable them to establish the relevant facts. It is not the practice of the Scottish Executive to make available advice from officials to Ministers.

Scottish Qualifications Authority

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what amount of increased resources was offered at the meeting between the Minister for Children and Education and the Chairman and Chief Executive of the Scottish Qualifications Authority on 25 July 2000 or whether the offer were unrestricted, and whether the offer was conditional and, if so, what the conditions were.

Mr Sam Galbraith: I asked the Chairman and Chief Executive of the Scottish Qualifications Authority to tell me what additional resources they needed. I placed no restriction on the amount which I would be prepared to consider making available, and no conditions were attached.

Sexual Abuse

Mr Gil Paterson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to ensure that a review is conducted of the law on sexual offences similar to that set out in Setting the Boundaries issued by the Home Office in July 2000 and, if so, what the timescale is for this review and which organisations it intends to consult.

Mr Jim Wallace: I refer to the answer I gave to question S1W-8945 on 18 August.

Sexual Abuse

Mr Gil Paterson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to introduce abuse prevention projects into schools, pre-school establishments and informal education centres and whether it will: (a) provide training for teachers and other staff in these settings on the implementation of these programmes; (b) fund the training and implementation of these programmes and, if so, to what level; (c) provide a timescale for their introduction; (d) make the programmes mandatory for each educational category listed; (e) make available to these establishments the abuse prevention packs already produced by voluntary organisations, and whether it intends to consult further on this matter and, if so, whether it will list those organisations it intends to consult.

Mr Sam Galbraith: The Scottish Executive has no plans to introduce abuse prevention projects into schools.

  All education authorities in Scotland have guidelines and procedures for child protection to ensure the safety and wellbeing of children and young people and to protect those adults working with them.

  Schools also play a part in the prevention of child abuse through the teaching they offer. Promoting Personal Safety and Child Protection in the Curriculum offers support to teachers in the planning and development of personal safety as an integral part of the curriculum. The Executive has also commissioned the University of Glasgow to create staff development materials, which will help schools to audit current practice and mount staff development activities.

  A Commitment to Protect - Supervising Sex Offenders in the Community recommended that all education authorities should have in place a personal safety programme promoting pupils’ skills, knowledge and understanding to assist them in living safely and feel empowered to reject inappropriate behaviour. Practical advice on this recommendation is being developed by the Expert Panel on Sex Offending.

Sexual Abuse

Mr Gil Paterson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive which local authorities currently have abuse prevention programmes in use in educational settings.

Mr Gil Paterson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list each (i) nursery school, (ii) primary school, (iii) secondary school and (iv) further education college which have in place abuse prevention projects, broken down by local authority area.

Mr Sam Galbraith: This information is not held centrally.

Transport

Mr Murray Tosh (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what payments it has made in the current financial year to fund new vehicle conversion costs under the Powershift scheme; whether the funds are equally accessible to all applicants from Scotland; what finance remains available as at 8 September 2000, and whether it intends to commit further resources to the scheme in the event that any available budget is fully committed in the course of the current financial year.

Sarah Boyack: Funds under the Powershift programme are allocated by the Energy Saving Trust against a number of criteria including age and type of vehicle, suitability of proposed use and impact on air quality and climate change. When funds available in Scotland in the current year were increased from £90,000 to £400,000, the Scottish Executive made it clear that if applications exceeded the resources available, priority within the additional allocation should be given to rural motorists.

  Thus far, £184,000 has been offered by the Energy Saving Trust to Powershift applicants leaving a balance of £216,000 remaining.

  No decision has been made about further allocations to Powershift in the current year, but the position is being kept under review.

Under Age Drinking

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it intends to take to address the increase in under age drinking reported in the Chief Medical Officer’s report 1999 Health in Scotland.

Iain Gray: The Scottish Executive is aware of these worrying trends and is committed to tackling the problem of under age drinking. Current action couples enforcement to reduce availability of alcohol to under-18s with targeted alcohol education to encourage a sensible approach to drinking. A national alcohol misuse strategy is currently being worked up and measures to tackle under age drinking will be an important factor.

Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body

Holyrood Project

Mr Murray Tosh (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Presiding Officer when the decision was made, and by whom, to procure the Holyrood project through a series of works packages, rather than by a traditional "single stage lump sum" procurement.

Sir David Steel: The Auditor General for Scotland’s report on the Holyrood project, published this week, explains in part 1 that the decision to adopt the "construction management" method of contracting was taken in July 1998 by "project management" in the Scottish Office, consistent with advice from the Design Team and the project’s cost consultants.

Holyrood Project

Mr Murray Tosh (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Presiding Officer what risk assessment was carried out before the selection of a procurement method for the Holyrood project and what were the reasons for selecting the chosen approach.

Sir David Steel: I am informed that all implications of the various methods of procurement were considered by the Scottish Office before a decision was made to opt for the Construction Management/works package approach to the Holyrood building project in July 1998. There has been no direct criticism of this decision in the investigations carried out by John Spencely and auditors on the project. The Construction Management Agreement requires the appointed Construction Manager to put a framework in place for managing the construction process, with construction works being carried out by the Trade Contractors. This approach offers the flexibility to deliver each element of the building at the best possible price and has enabled progress to be made on site notwithstanding the continued development of the final design.

Holyrood Project

Mr Murray Tosh (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Presiding Officer whether Bovis will be appointed to manage the fit-out of the new Parliament building; whose decision this will be, and when it will be taken.

Sir David Steel: The fit-out of the new Parliament building will be managed by the Holyrood Project Team acting together with the Scottish Parliament Procurement Office. It is envisaged that Bovis Lend Lease may have a role as the Parliament’s agent in procuring some elements of the fit-out, given their considerable understanding of the finished building and their existing responsibilities as Construction Manager for the project.

Holyrood Project

Mr Murray Tosh (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Presiding Officer  what progress has been made in achieving the £31-£44 million in savings on construction and other costs identified in paragraph 8.7 of the Spencely Report on the Holyrood building project.

Sir David Steel: SPCB Report No 4 was endorsed by the Parliament on 5 April 2000. This made clear that, based on the latest design proposals, the Holyrood building could be delivered for £195 million. The Convener of the Holyrood Progress Group has reported to the SPCB that the Quantity Surveyor’s latest cost report for September 2000 is consistent with that figure. He has also assured me that, as the tendering process continues, the Design Team is carrying out an ongoing review of opportunities to identify any potential for further savings.